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Consumer Safety Agency In Limbo

White House Fails to Fill Vacancy; Remaining Commissioners Stripped of their Power

By Joseph S. Enoch
ConsumerAffairs.com

February 6, 2007

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The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is currently handcuffed in many of its operations because it does not have enough commissioners to vote on civil penalties and all regulatory activities.

The CPSC normally consists of three commissioners. But on July 15, 2006, one of the commissioners, CPSC Chairman Hal Stratton, resigned abruptly, leaving a vacancy that only President Bush can fill.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Act, which created and governs the CPSC, the two remaining commissioners can continue their regulatory activities for six months after a vacancy has been created. After those six months, their powers are stripped until the President has filled the vacancy and as of Jan. 15, 2007, that has been the case.

"The commission is continuing all of its other activities, such as product recall announcements," Scott Wolfson, CPSC spokesman said. "But meanwhile the commission has a body of two that is not able to vote on civil penalties and all regulatory activities."

An example of a civil penalty would include the $750,000 settlement the CPSC imposed on The Hoover Company on Jan. 5, 2007, for selling vacuums that posed a fire hazard.

Regulatory activities include such actions as the creation of new warning labels for all portable electric generators that warn of the dangers of the unit's exhaust. The commissioners voted for the label on Jan. 4, 2007.

The warning labels and Hoover penalty are examples of a handful of actions the two standing commissioners voted unanimously on before their powers dissolved Jan. 15.

It is unclear how long the CPSC will be in this legal limbo. President George Bush has not announced a replacement and when he does, that individual must be approved by the Senate.

The White House did not return two calls from ConsumerAffairs.com, seeking comment on this story.

Michael Baroody, the National Association of Manufacturers' top lobbyist, is said to be President Bush's choice to not only fill the vacancy, but run the CPSC, according to The Wall Street Journal.

This state of limbo has occurred three times before, according to Wolfson.

The last time was in April 2005 where the CPSC lost quorum for a month before Bush appointed the current acting commissioner, Nancy Nord. Then in 2001-2002, again with George Bush, the CPSC did not have a legal quorum for three months before Bush filled the vacancy with Stratton. The other time was 11 months in 1989 with George Bush Sr.

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